CORAL GABLES (CBSMiami) – For the second straight year, Miami Hurricanes’ defensive coordinator Manny Diaz is in the running for the award given to the nation’s top assistant coach.

As announced on Tuesday, Diaz, who also serves as the team’s linebackers coach, is one of 15 semifinalists for the Broyles Award.

Under Diaz, Miami runs an aggressive 4-3 defense and ranks first nationally in sacks (3.8 per game) and fourth in tackles for loss (9.0). The Hurricanes rank 15th nationally in scoring defense at 17.7 points per game allowed. Miami has forced 27 turnovers through 10 games.

The 15 semi-finalists are:

Alabama – Brian Daboll, Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks

Auburn – Kevin Steele, Defensive Coordinator

Clemson – Tony Elliot, Co–Offensive Coordinator, Running Backs

Georgia – Mel Tucker, Defensive Coordinator

Iowa State – Jon Heacock, Defensive Coordinator/Safeties

Miami – Manny Diaz, Defensive Coordinator

Mississippi State – Todd Grantham, Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers

Notre Dame – Mike Elko, Defensive Coordinator

Oklahoma – Bill Bedenbaugh, Offensive Coordinator/Offensive Line

TCU – Chad Glasgow, Defensive Coordinator

UCF – Troy Walters, Offensive Coordinator

USC – Tee Martin, Offensive Coordinator/WR

Washington – Pete Kwiatkowski, Defensive Coordinator

Washington State – Alex Grinch, Defensive Coordinator / Secondary

Wisconsin – Jim Leonhard, Defensive Coordinator

The list of 15 will be narrowed down to 5 finalists. From the final 5, the 2017 Broyles Award winner will be announced on Tuesday, December 5th in Little Rock, Arkansas.

Alex DonnoBorn and raised in Palmetto Bay, Florida, Alex attended high school at Westminster Christian. A lifelong fan of "The U," he went on to earn his...More fromAlex Donno